


At First Sight

by rainwrites



Series: The Little Things [19]
Category: SHINee, f(x)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-08
Updated: 2018-06-08
Packaged: 2019-05-19 18:19:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,816
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14878856
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rainwrites/pseuds/rainwrites
Summary: There really isn’t anything special about this particular day, until something he never expected to happen, happens.





	At First Sight

 

Mondays in the university aren’t generally exciting, often passing with little or no happening at all. For Lee Taemin, it starts like any other day, as he leaves the warmth of his bed for a quick shower, eats his usual breakfast of eggs and toast, and makes his way to his first class half awake. He spends the rest of the day as he usually does— bored out of his wits as he waits for the day to end.

There really isn’t anything special about this particular day, until something he never expected to happen, happens.

Having just finished his last class, Taemin makes his way out of the biology room, glad that his day is finally over. His after-class activities usually include a stop to the library to study, but today he has other plans, namely settling in his comfortable bed to binge-watch a sitcom his best friend has recently recommended. Intending to grab a quick snack from his favorite vending machine before heading home, he makes his way to the second floor of the nearby art department.

It is when he approaches the dimly lit hallway that it happens, and it’s wonderful, really. All of a sudden, everything becomes a blur and time slows itself to a halt. At that precise moment, his vision consists of only one subject, that subject being a girl standing at the other end of the hallway.

The girl has taken his breath away. He’s probably exaggerating, but there’s an ethereal glow about her, a stream of sunlight casting radiance upon her form. He feels his heart stop, as if Cupid’s arrow itself has just struck straight to his chest.

 _Is this love at first sight?_ Maybe.

She is standing in front of his beloved vending machine and Taemin thinks they’re clearly meant to be. He watches as she places a bill into the slot and pauses for a long while, staring at the machine contemplatively, as if the choice she’s making is a matter of life or death.

_How cute._

Taemin is practically swooning. His legs, his mouth, even his brain has ceased to function momentarily. The only thing working is Taemin’s heart, and it’s telling him, ‘ _Taemin, if you don't’ introduce yourself to this girl right now, you’ll die a slow, torturous death.’_

Lee Taemin takes his death threats seriously, and once his brain has received the warning from his heart, it begins to function properly. He starts to move towards the girl when he is stopped in his tracks by a sudden commotion in the otherwise silent hall.

Taemin can only watch as the girl delivers a ferocious boot to the vending machine, in a manner one might kick a soccer ball. This is followed by a long string of curses, muttered venomously under her breath.

“How freaking hard is it to get a damn chocolate from this stupid machine?!”

The girl is now screaming at the poor machine and _oh dear god, he’s definitely in love_.

The angry kicking continues as Taemin finally makes his way to her end. Once he’s near, he peeks at the machine and sure enough, a chocolate bar is caught in the spinning wire, so close to falling but still so far.

“Didn’t even care about me,” the girl grumbles dramatically, “It just took my money and gave me nothing in return.”

He lets out a soft laugh, amused at her theatrical display of exasperation as the girl turns around and meets his eyes.

“Hi,” he says and waves a little, “Would you like some help?”

He’s her knight in shining armor, Taemin muses, and without waiting for an answer he advances towards the machine and pounds with all his might, trying to shake the treat off, but alas his efforts are in vain.

“I guess I’ll just…” He scratches his head embarrassingly, reaching for his pocket and pulling a crumpled bill, the money that’s supposed to go to his snack. He pushes the bill into the slot and sighs as it pops back out. _So much for being her knight in shining armor._ Laughing nervously, he snatches it up and smoothes it out before trying again.

There is a whir this time as the bill enters the machine. He pushes the buttons for the chocolate bar and the candy drops, _finally_ , bouncing against the side of the machine before landing with a gentle thud at the bottom of the serving tray. Taemin bends down and reaches a hand inside, under the thick plastic flap, and when he pulls his hand out and hands the bar to her, she jumps up and squeals in excitement.

“Thank you…” she trails off, prompting him to say his name.

“Taemin. Lee Taemin,” he says.

“My name is Park Sunyoung. Thank you for the treat, Lee Taemin!” she says, beaming at him.

“No problem.”

“This stupid machine probably doesn’t like me that much.” She declares, giving the dented machine another kick. Suddenly, there is an odd click and a metallic clutter, and out came a dozen or so treats.

“Hey! Free snacks!”

 

* * *

 

And once Cupid’s arrow has struck, it stays stuck in his heart.

Taemin sees Sunyoung again on his way home after class a few days after. She is standing in front of a fountain this time, a single coin playing in between her fingers and a wistful expression on her face.

She doesn’t notice him right away, seemingly lost in her own world. Without a word, he makes his way to her side, watching as she whispers a wish and flips a coin into the fountain.

“I don’t think that’s a wishing well,” he says, and Sunyoung turns to him, her face lighting up with surprise as recognition flickers in her eyes.

“Isn’t this one though?” she smiles cheekily, humoring him. “Make a wish and let’s see if it comes true.”

So Taemin has. He has wished to see Sunyoung again, and _again and again and again._

He has.

 

* * *

 

He’s not at all surprised at how quickly and easily they have become friends. Truth be told, he enjoys Sunyoung’s company very much, as he discovers when she starts hanging out with him. They spend the next three days eating lunch together at the cafeteria and studying in the library after class, much to Taemin’s delight.

It’s now the weekend, and he’s meeting Sunyoung again.

Taemin pauses on the edge of the sidewalk, a tellingly sappy smile teasing his lips as he notices how pretty and charming the surrounding tree-lined streets of the university are. He then jogs briskly across the road towards the school’s gates, pausing to retrieve his phone urgently vibrating in his pocket. As he swipes it open, he finds a message from Sunyoung herself: _Are you standing me up? :(_

His fingers hastily type a reply as he chuckles lightly at the girl’s impatience, dropping the phone back into his pocket as he makes his way to his destination. He has been running a little late that morning, as he’s not used to waking up earlier on Saturdays, much less go out.

He finally arrives, and he pauses in the doorway of the library for a bit, breathing in and out as he attempts to contain the somewhat idiotic grin that has suddenly threatened to overcome him. He peers through the glass as his eyes scan the inside, and he smiles to himself as he finds Sunyoung sitting at their usual spot at the far corner of the room.

He pushes the door open slowly, a small bell jingling and announcing his arrival as Sunyoung looks up from the other side of the room. Their eyes meet, and his cheeks flush the tiniest bit when her face lights up upon seeing him. He makes his way across the library towards her, and he smiles apologetically at his lateness.

“Hey,” she greets him, “glad you finally made it.”

He sits down at the chair opposite hers, taking off his jacket since it is a bit warmer inside. They engage in small talk for a while, before he takes his things out and starts his study session, Sunyoung following suit.

Taemin’s smile doesn’t leave his face as he studies, more than happy to do this in Sunyoung’s company. Every few minutes, his eyes look up from what he’s doing to glance at the girl and she does the same. They spend the next hour studying until he hears her sigh in defeat. She moves from her seat, leaning closer to him, closer, _closer_ until she’s close enough he can feel her breath on his face.

With a smile, she whispers, “Taemin, how about you and I take a little study break for now?”

Well, he doesn’t mind that at all. “Yeah, let’s do that.”

Their “study break” goes on for a few hours, as they talk and talk and talk. He learns more about her, as she tells him about the things she likes to do and how her life at the university is. As she talks, Taemin listens, engrossed in her every word and action. She has a habit of talking with her hands a lot and he finds himself captivated at how passionate she is with everything she says.

There is a mischievous twinkle in her eyes as she laughs with him. She looks happy and relaxed and Taemin hopes he’s at least part of the reason for that glint in her chocolate eyes.

It is with this thought and with every passing second spent with Sunyoung’s presence that Taemin realizes, that he’s falling for her more and more.

 

* * *

 

Another week has passed, and Taemin decides he doesn’t want to be _just friends_ anymore, so he wastes no time trying to win Sunyoung.

He finds his best friend Jongin at the cafeteria during lunch one day, and despite the other boy looking quite unsympathetic, Taemin claims he’s caught the love bug and gushes about his newfound ladylove over cheeseburgers and fries.

Taemin crosses his arms and pouts when Jongin asks if he’s been to the psychiatrist yet, and he looks even more petulant when the latter remarks on the striking resemblance between him and a little child. It’s when Taemin starts whining along with his pouting that Jongin lets out an exaggerated sigh and asks whom he has fallen for.

“Her name is Park Sunyoung,” Taemin reveals and Jongin chokes on his food, sending himself into a coughing fit that only went away after a couple of minutes and several slaps to the back.

“What?” Taemin asks, and his eyes are as wide as saucers when Jongin reveals that he’s actually in the drama club with her for almost two years now. He distinctly remembers Sunyoung telling him about her Friday night rehearsals and he mentally slaps himself for not putting two and two together.

“Isn’t she, too…” Jongin starts, trying to find the right words, “ _energetic_ , to be your type?”

Taemin knows what the other boy means. Jongin has been his best friend for most of his life, and as far as his friend knows Park Sunyoung isn’t the type he usually falls for. In fact, none of his ex-girlfriends are like her.

“She’s different, you know,” Taemin explains, “I can’t explain it, but I really think she’s the one.”

There is an unbearably dreamy look at Taemin’s face, to Jongin’s disgust, as the former continues to describe how Sunyoung can possibly be his soul mate.

“I heard she’s in a relationship though,” Jongin cuts him off as the love-struck boy is in the middle of listing ways to woo her, and Taemin misses the strange glint in his friend’s eye as the other steals a couple of fries from his plate.

“Is she?” Taemin’s excited face suddenly turns detached, and he takes a sip of his soda, pretending that the revelation doesn’t bother him.

“Yeah, with this guy Kim Jongdae. I heard they’re really in love,” he says, drawing a heart in the air with the stolen fries.

“Give me that.” Taemin grabs the offending potatoes and stuffs them in his mouth, glaring at his friend.

Taemin hopes the other boy is wrong, because if she were in a relationship she wouldn’t be hanging around with him as much. He has spent the last two weeks having lunch with her every day, and the weekends studying with her in the library. Aren’t couples supposed to spend most of their time together? Besides, judging from the looks and the smiles she has shared with him, Taemin thinks he’s not the only one who feels something more.

Yeah, Jongin’s definitely mistaken.

 

* * *

 

It turns out Jongin’s not mistaken.

Taemin feels his heart practically stop, and he wonders if it will decide to jump to his throat or plummet to his feet. He tells himself that it’s not real, that it’s just his imagination playing with him – yet it’s clear as day – Sunyoung, with another boy.

He finds them in the parking lot later in the afternoon. It appears that he has come to pick her up, seeing as he’s waiting by his car as Sunyoung practically skips towards him. She wraps her arms around the other boy, this _Kim Jongdae_ , and Taemin’s eyes narrow into slits as Jongdae hugs her in return and pats her head affectionately afterwards.

Taemin is brokenhearted. Of course he is — it’s just the love of his life with a boy that isn’t him. Against his will, he admits they look adorable together. They even look similar, two smiley people without a care in the world as they talk and laugh together. They look the perfect couple.

A sad sigh escapes his lips as he turns his head to the side, away from the sight of Park Sunyoung and her boyfriend. There’s sadness and disappointment and a couple other nameless emotions all tangled inside him and he feels foolish for ever thinking Sunyoung feels the same way he does for her.

His eyes drift back to the scene before him, and he feels a sharp pain in his chest as he watches Sunyoung and Jongdae go inside the latter’s car, riding off into the sunset together.

 

* * *

 

Taemin has never felt this sick and defeated his whole life.

He hasn’t been able to keep anything down for the past few days, and has only managed a spoonful or two of whatever it is for lunch or dinner before he felt like he was going to hurl.

It’s pathetic, really.

He still doesn’t feel good, so he decides to bail on his afternoon classes and spend the rest of the day curled up in his room, wondering why exactly he feels sicker than he can remember feeling.

He has successfully managed to avoid Sunyoung thus far, turning his phone off and steering clear of the places they usually went to. He wonders if she’s looking for him, but she probably isn’t since she might be too busy with her boyfriend.

All of a sudden, he is pulled from his miserable thoughts when he hears his door open, and he doesn’t expect to find none other thank Park Sunyoung standing in his doorway, crossing her arms and looking a bit more than irritated.

“You’ve been avoiding me,” she says, unsmiling, and Taemin isn’t used to seeing her this way.

“I’ve been busy,” he croaks, and chances are the girl knows he’s lying because she snorts at him in disbelief. She looks displeased, but her look softens when she approaches him and sees him in his pitiful state.

“What happened? Are you okay?” she asks gently, settling on the foot of his bed. He doesn’t respond, his mind unable to come up with the proper words to describe how he feels.

She continues to observe him, her brown eyes flickering over his face and Taemin feels like she can see through him. She runs a hand through her hair, frowning slightly, before letting out a soft sigh, “I missed you, you know.”

At her words, the feeling is back – that fluttery sensation in his stomach that is so wonderful and horrible at the same time. It makes him feel nauseous.

“It hasn’t been the same without you,” she continues, and before Taemin can stop himself he sits up and says, a bit harshly, “What are you doing here? Don’t you have a boyfriend to take care of?”

“A boyfriend?” She looks discombobulated, and Taemin wonders if she’s just that good of an actress, “Whom are you talking about?”

“I saw the two of you together,” he says, feeling his chest seize at the painful memory, “by the parking lot a few days ago. You were hugging.”

“Oh,” realization dawns on her. “Jongdae- _oppa_?”

She sounds surprised, but not altogether unhappy, and another spark of irrational jealousy flares within him. Suddenly, she bursts out laughing, and Taemin is more confused than ever.

“Why are you laughing?” he asks, raising an eyebrow in confusion. She has a cute smile on her face as she grins from ear to ear, and it’s naughty and innocent at the same time.

Sunyoung leans towards him after a while, motioning for him to come closer, and once they’re close enough, she whispers, “Jongdae-oppa… is my brother.”

_What?_

_Oh._

“My half-brother, actually,” she clarifies, adding that the older boy has just come over to visit when he saw them. Suddenly, Taemin has only one thought on his mind: _Kill Jongin!_

A few beats pass, and Taemin snaps out of his _Kill-Jongin_ trance as he looks over at her once more. Her penetrating brown eyes are looking into his, expressing something unknown for him— but he likes it, the small thrill of excitement and electrifying sensation it gives him.

“I like you, Lee Taemin,” she says when he still doesn’t speak, and then adds, “very much.”

He stares at her for a moment, taking in her beloved features. _What? Did she really just say what he thinks she said?_

His heart is now pounding in his chest, so loudly he is sure she can hear it, as Sunyoung continues to stare at him, waiting patiently for his answer.

“I like you, too, Sunyoung,” he admits, finally. He wants to yell at her that he loves her, but he guesses it’s too soon for such proclamation.

She throws her arms around him, sending them both crashing down on his bed, and he pulls her tight to his chest, hugging her even closer. She’s very warm and her heartbeat is so strong he can feel it thudding against his own. He inhales deeply, breathing in her scent. She smells of chocolates and strawberry and something else distinctly feminine. It’s intoxicating.

They stay in the position for a long time and he observes her as she observes him, a small, satisfied smile on her face. Taemin tries to still his heart as he watches Sunyoung look up at him. Her big, bright eyes shine like stars. The brown as dark as chocolate. _Why did she have to be so goddamned cute?_

Taemin’s eyes slip from Sunyoung’s brown eyes down to her cherry lips. They look so soft and inviting, and he bites his lips anxiously.

As if conscious of his wandering eyes, Sunyoung wets her lips with a swipe of her tongue, and Taemin notes the color rising to her cheeks, making him want to kiss her all the more. _Damn those irresistible lips._

“I would like to kiss you,” Taemin says quietly, finally letting out the words he’s been dying to ask. There’s a slight frown on his face, a bit unsure on what her response would be.

Sunyoung stays quiet, only staring at him with an intensity Taemin has never seen in her eyes before, and he seems to consider this close to assent. His hand drifts up into her hair, cupping the back of her head. He moves his head so their noses touch, and their lips are so close that their warm breaths mingled. His eyes search hers, once again asking for permission to claim her lips.

Sunyoung’s lips close over his then, so soft yet so firm that Taemin’s brain almost melts. He sighs against her, opening his mouth at her gentle press of tongue and wraps his arms around her waist, pulling her even closer to him.

A few minutes pass before Taemin parts lips with Sunyoung, and he hears her giggle slightly. Then, he notices that she’s practically pinned to his bed. Her face is red, lips swollen and hair tangled – and Taemin doesn’t look all that better. His hair is messy, lips as red and as swollen and his cheeks flushed.

 

* * *

 

Taemin awakes a little before she does, the bright morning light creeping through the windows waking him up. Their bodies are still pressed together, her head resting against his shoulder, arm draped across his midsection, and legs intertwined with his. Taemin loves the feeling of holding Sunyoung, of touching her.

It’s been more than a month since they got together, and Taemin thinks he can get used to this. Being with Sunyoung is amazing, and he feels closer to her now more than ever.

It's not just her physical attributes that attracted her to him. It’s her spirit, her childlike soul, her wit, her stubbornness. She’s bright and bubbly and always makes his day a lot better, and Taemin notes how his otherwise boring and predictable life has become a lot more spontaneous and exciting ever since she came into his life.

Carefully, he brushes a strand out of her face and just watches her sleep, his breath catching in his throat at the sight.

She’s even more beautiful like this, he thinks, so wonderfully natural, her hair flowing around her head like a halo, lips parted slightly as the morning sun kissed her face.

She looks so innocent just lying there, asleep, but Taemin knows better from their nights together. She’s as innocent as he is, and he isn’t innocent at all.

Speaking of last night, a smug smile graces his lips as he remembers every sensual touch, every gentle kiss, every breathy moan… his heart skips a beat.

Taemin cannot resist the urge and places a small kiss on her lips, surprised when his kiss is returned. He opens his eyes to see her smiling up at him, and at this point Taemin’s stomach is doing full-blown flips at her gaze.

“Good morning.”

Her lips curve into a smile and she snuggles closer to his chest, her arms looping tightly around his waist to be even closer to him. With a soft sigh, she murmurs, “Let’s stay like this all day.”

She leans up once more and presses her lips to his in a long, hard kiss before burying her face on the crook of his neck, breathing in his scent.

“Let’s.” Taemin is happy, contented. It’s a Saturday, and they can stay in bed all day if they want to.


End file.
